How to calculate child support in massachusetts
Newest 2021 MA Child Support Calculator
This Child Support Calculator uses the October 4, 2021 Massachusetts Child Support Guidelines, which are required for child support orders in MA as of October 4, 2021. For child support court orders between June 15, 2018 and October 3, 2021, use this 2018-2021 MA Child Support Calculator.
I mediate MA divorces in ALL Massachusetts counties and courts with live video conferencing on Zoom. Please feel free to contact me with any questions you have about divorce mediation or uncontested divorce. You can try the most user-friendly MA alimony calculator here.
After calculating your child support, you can click the button “Save Results to Worksheet PDF” to save the results to a Child Support Guidelines Worksheet .pdf, or you can add the case name, docket number and other information to create a completely court-ready Child Support Guidelines Worksheet .pdf.
To calculate how much child support you should pay or receive, simply fill in the following information and click “Calculate”.
The August 2022 MA Supreme Judicial Court ruling in Cavanaugh v. Cavanaugh says that judges making orders in contested (1B) cases must look not only at the result of this child support calculation, but also at child support calculations that first calculate alimony, then use the post-alimony-calculation incomes to then calculate child support. A unique Cavanagh alimony, child support, and tax consequences calculator for Massachusetts divorce on this site does the calculations that judges must consider when making orders in contested (1B) divorce cases that could involve child support.
After you have calculated your results and downloaded a court-ready .pdf, you should check your final calculations against the state court’s calculating .pdf at: MA fillable .pdf 2021 child support calculator. You may find the state court form very difficult to fill out unless you you use my website first. If you use my website and download the results as a .
pdf, it will give you a guide as to how to fill out the state’s confusing version of the form. The resulting two .pdf’s should be identical.
a) Enter a name for yourself:
Enter a name for your spouse:
b) How many children under age 18 do you have together?:
c) How many children do you have together (and you are still supporting) that have turned 18 but not yet turned 23? Enter the number of children you have together who i) have turned 18 but not yet turned 23 and ii) live with you or are supported by you. If a child is still attending high school, treat the child as under 18.
d) Which of the following three choices is closest to describing the amount of time the children spend with each parent? Indicate the amount of time that the child spends with each parent by choosing from among 4 choices: about 50% time with each parent, about 1/3 of the time with you and 2/3 of the time with your spouse, about 2/3 of the time with you and 1/3 of the time with your spouse, or (less common) “split” custody, in which different children have primary residence with different parents.
Choose the one that is closest to your situation.
About 67% with Petitioner A and 33% with Petitioner B
About 50% of the time with each parent
About 67% with Petitioner B and 33% with Petitioner A
(Less common) There is more than one child covered by the order, and each parent provides a primary residence for at least one child (different children have different primary residences)
You have indicated that 1 or more children primarily reside with Petitioner A and 1 or more children primarily reside with Petitioner B
b-1) Indicate how many children under 18 primarily reside with Petitioner A and how many with Petitioner B:
c-1) Indicate how many children 18 and 23 who receive child support primarily reside with Petitioner A and how many with Petitioner B:
e) Enter a weekly dollar amount for the following income and expenses:
Gross weekly income Enter the gross weekly income for each parent. Gross weekly income is the total amount BEFORE taxes and other deductions are made from your paycheck.
:
Health Insurance cost each week Enter the amount paid by each spouse for family and for individual health care insurance each week.:
Dental/Vision cost each week Enter the amount paid by each spouse weekly toward the child’s vision or dental insurance. (It can be difficult to separate this out from family vision and dental, since it is typically paid together.):
Child care amount paid for Youngest child:
Child care amount paid for Second Youngest child:
Child care amount paid for Third Youngest child:
Child care amount paid for Fourth Youngest child:
Child care amount paid for Fifth Youngest child:
Weekly alimony or child support paid out to a previous marriage If either of you pays alimony to a previous spouse or if either of you pays out child support for a child from a previous relationship or marriage, enter the weekly paid out in that person’s column.:
Do you receive a Social Security dependency benefit? (uncommon)
Yes
No
The numbering and description of each line come directly from the Massachusetts Probate Court's CHILD SUPPORT GUIDELINES WORKSHEET, which is a required document for divorce and child support cases and can be downloaded from the link here.
Below are the calculations that lead to the child support amount. The numbering and description of each line come directly from the Massachusetts Probate Court's CHILD SUPPORT GUIDELINES WORKSHEET, which is a required document for child support and divorce cases. Because you indicated that each parent will have the children about 50% of the time, you will see two sets of calculations. The first one calculates child support as if had most of the parenting time, and the second one calculates child support as if had most of the parenting time. The actual presumptive ("expected") payment in this 50-50 custody situation is the mathematical difference between the two calculated amounts, with the higher income spouse (typically) paying this difference. This calculation is shown at the bottom of the page.
The Easiest Massachusetts Child Support Calculator
How many children? i
Your time with children as % i
Your weekly pay i
Other parent's pay i
Child support = $0 weekly i
Not in Massachusetts? Use your location's child support calculator.
Massachusetts child support payments
Child support is designed to ensure both parents contribute financially to their children's care after they separate.
Like all U.S. states, Massachusetts uses a formula to determine how much each parent should contribute, and the result serves as a guideline for the judge who issues the child support order. Use the calculator above to estimate what the formula will produce in your case.
For a typical family, the Massachusetts formula produces the highest payment in the country, according to a 2019 study by Custody X Change. When a parent in the Bay State would pay $1,200 a month in child support, a parent in the same situation elsewhere may pay a third of that.
A judge can deviate from the formula under certain circumstances, such as when a child has special needs or parents agree to an alternate amount.
Estimating parenting time could cost you thousands a year in child support. Let Custody X Change calculate your time.
Calculate My Parenting Time Now
How child support is calculated
In Massachusetts, the parent with less parenting time typically pays child support monthly, though a judge can order weekly payments. If parents have nearly equal time with the children and both contribute financially, the parent with the higher income pays.
To estimate your payment, use the calculator above. To calculate your guideline support amount exactly, fill out the Child Support Guidelines Worksheet.
You'll need to enter the number of eligible children you have together, each parent's approximate portion of parenting time and their gross weekly income.
Eligible children are typically under 18 or still in high school. However, support may continue to age 23 if the child still lives with a parent and is financially dependent on them, or until 23 if the same circumstances apply and the child is pursuing an undergraduate degree.
Indicate whether the children live with each parent for nearly equal time (shared physical custody) or with one parent for at least two-thirds of the time (sole physical custody).
A third option, for parents who each provide the primary home for a different child (split physical custody), is rare.
Gross weekly income is the amount earned from work, tips and other sources before taxes. Costs for child care, health insurance and other support payments then get subtracted from each parent's total.
Low-income and high-income families
If a parent has a weekly gross income of less than $250, the support guidelines recommend they pay between $12 and $20 a month in child support. A judge can order a lower or higher payment if they think it would better fit the circumstances.
The guidelines cap out at a yearly income of $400,000 for both parents combined. When parents earn more, their support payment is based solely on $400,000 (though the judge can increase the payment if it would benefit the children).
Paying child support
The Massachusetts Department of Revenue has details on how to pay support. The paying parent shouldn't pay the other parent directly, because then the court couldn't track it.
In some cases, support is withheld from the paying parent's paycheck.
Modifying child support
You can request a child support modification every three years. You'll need to show the court that your payment differs from the current guideline amount, you've lost or can no longer afford health insurance for the children, or a major change in circumstances has occurred, such as a job loss or a change in parenting time.
If you request a modification before three years have passed, you'll need to prove that a major change in circumstances is impacting your ability to pay.
Enforcing a child support order
If a parent misses child support payments, the Department of Revenue can automatically take actions like suspending their driver's license or placing a lien on their bank account.
When a parent routinely fails to pay support, you may need to bring a contempt of court case against the other parent to have a judge enforce child support orders.
Keeping track of payments and expenses
Remember that a child support order is legally binding and must be taken seriously.
Whether you're paying or receiving support, the Custody X Change app can help you keep track of payments. Log details of every one into your expense tracker to ensure you're sticking to the court order.
You can also track other child-related expenses and print an invoice if the other parent needs to reimburse you.
Custody X Change keeps you on top of all aspects of child custody, including payments and expenses.
Estimating parenting time could cost you thousands a year in child support. Let Custody X Change calculate your time.
Calculate My Parenting Time Now
Estimating parenting time could cost you thousands a year in child support. Let Custody X Change calculate your time.
Calculate My TimeIf you file a child support claim, how much money will you get?
Developed by an AmeriCorps Project of Western Massachusetts Legal Services; updated and revised by Jeff Wolf, Massachusetts Law Reform Institute
Retrieved October, 2009
The State of Massachusetts has a document called the Child Support Guidelines.
When calculating the amount of support that the other parent must pay each week, the judge must use this document. nine0004
You can calculate your child support amount using the Child Support Guidelines Worksheet. To do this, you must enter the data of the financial report of the other parent into the table. If you are doing this for the first time, then it is not so easy to do. Look at a sample of filling out such a table (sample worksheet). The Internal Revenue Service's child support department has an online calculator. You can use this spreadsheet to calculate the amount of child support the judge may order you to pay. The court will use the Child Support Guidelines Worksheet to decide on the amount of child support. In rare cases, the court may order payment of a familiar amount
The court will usually order the other parent to pay at least $80 a month in support. In rare cases, if the other parent has very little income, the court may order no child support at all.
If the other parent is not working, the court may order the other parent to look for work and report the results of the job search to the court.
If a father has other children he knows, how will this affect our child support payments?
If your child's father has children he knows, your child will receive less child support. According to the Child Support Guidelines, the judge considers the amount of the other child's payment before deciding how much child support to pay to your child. nine0004
To calculate how this will affect your child's child support, you need to know how much the father pays the child he knows. Subtract that amount from his pre-tax income. When filling out the Child Support Guidelines Worksheet, enter the amount received there.
For example
Suppose the other parent earns $100 a week before taxes and pays $25 of that amount to the other child. Subtract $25 from $100 and you get $75. Enter that $75 on the Child Support Guidelines Worksheet under Father's Weekly Income and you'll know how much the other parent owes your child. nine0004
Can I change the amount of child support and get more?
You may be able to get more child support if your "financial circumstances" have changed significantly since your last court order.
Here are some examples of such changes:
- The other parent's income increased by at least 20%;
- Your oldest child is 13 years old;
- You were earning at least $20,000 when you received your last child support order and are now making less; or
- One of your children did not live with you before, but now he has moved to live with you.
To find out if your circumstances have changed enough to receive more child support, you should do the following: calculator) check if your data matches.
To apply for a new court order, you must file a Complaint for Modification.
You must pay the sheriff or bailiff to serve the other parent with a subpoena (a formal document about an upcoming hearing where the judge can issue a new order).
If you have a low income, the state can help pay your expenses. To do this, you must fill out the Affidavit of Indigency form. nine0004
At the appointed time, you must appear in court and bring the following documents:
- your completed Financial Statement,
- your completed Child Support Guidelines Worksheet,
- document obliging the employer to calculate alimony from the salary (wage assignment form),
- any document proving a change in your "financial circumstances". nine0038
- Find a legal specialist working in America with Russian-speaking citizens who specializes in family matters.
- Entrust him with the authority to collect funds, based on US law.
- the duration of a broken marriage. The longer the marriage lasted, the longer the period of payments the ex-wife can count on. For example, if the family broke up no earlier than 10 years later, then payments can be assigned for life; nine0031
- if the ex-spouse earned more, and the wife got used to the level of family income established in the marriage, then the alimony will be appropriate;
- if the wife had a disease, the treatment of which was paid for by the husband, being married to her, then even after the divorce he is obliged to allocate material resources to her for this;
- the ex-wife ran the household and took care of the children, being unable to work, and the only breadwinner in the family was the man.
Perhaps during the time spent in marriage, he was able to increase his level of income. In this case, the former spouse will also receive alimony. She is given some time until she gets a job and can earn on her own. This may go on for a year or two. But do not forget about the duration of the marriage, if it was quite long, then the alimony payments can be for life; nine0031 - Also, a spouse who paid for his wife's studies during family life is not released from this responsibility until the end of his studies and after the dissolution of the marriage.
- if the ex-wife is disabled or pregnant;
- raises a child up to 3 years old or a disabled child.
- Search for the defendant in the case. A US citizen can easily move around the territory of his native state, hiding from the claimant. For the plaintiff, the mother of the child, it is quite difficult to enter the country.
There is a visa regime between Russia and America, and not everyone is allowed to enter the States. Solving the problem at a distance is extremely difficult. Finding a competent representative in a foreign country is also not easy. nine0031 - Language barrier. Ideally, if you can find a Russian-speaking representative. Because to understand an already complicated matter without knowing the language is doubly difficult.
- Competition Norm. Under what legislation is alimony collected in America?
- you can apply to a Russian court; nine0031
- can be contacted by the US courts.
- Find a legal specialist who works in America with Russian-speaking citizens, specializing in family matters.
- Entrust him with the authority to collect funds, based on US law. nine0031
- Whereas in Russia from 25 to 50% of the payer's income for the maintenance of minors is collected, in the USA the amount of funds collected is on average 10-30% of the income. The size is smaller, but the income is generally higher. Moreover, the money is collected in a fixed amount.
- All the circumstances of a particular case are taken into account both in one and in the other country. But if in Russia it is important with whom exactly the minor lives, then in the USA it is with which of the parents he communicates more. This approach seems to be quite fair. Indeed, in the process of communication, the parent often allocates money for the needs of the child on a voluntary basis. nine0031
- In America, there are special enforcement agencies. In Russia, this is done by bailiffs.
- The Russian Federation provides for criminal liability for evading the payment of alimony. In the USA, too, you can go to jail if you do not allocate money to meet the needs of your son or daughter.
- https://admbabynino.ru/ssha-alimenty-byvshej-zhene/
- https://mystrahovki.ru/obyazatelstva/osobennosti-uplaty-alimentov-v-ssha-kto-komu-i- skolko-platit/
- https://nystateattorneyatlaw.com/kak-naznachayutsya-alimenty-v-ssha/
- https://aif.ru/health/psychologic/razvod_po-amerikanski_kak_vopros_alimentov_reshaetsya_v_shtatah
- https://ru.
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If the other parent doesn't show up for the hearing
If the other parent doesn't show up for the hearing, the judge will require proof that they knew the date of the hearing. Show the judge the subpoena signed by the sheriff to serve the other parent. You will again need to show the judge that the other parent's income or familiar financial circumstances of your case have changed. If you can prove this, the judge may issue a new child support order.
If the other parent comes to the hearing
If the other parent comes to the hearing, the court will ask you and him to meet with a probation officer. Such a meeting is needed to see if you can come to an agreement. If you have a 209A Protective Order, ask the judge to give you a private room. You have the legal right to be in different rooms with the other parent. The court supervisor will walk between you, trying to reach an agreement. Don't settle for what you think is unfair. You have the right to speak to the judge. Typically, the judge will order the other parent to pay support in accordance with the Support Guidelines, or an amount close to what the guideline requires. If you agreed to a lower amount at your meeting with the supervisory officer, make sure you think it through. nine0004
What should I do if I need child support immediately?
To start receiving child support as soon as possible, you must file Motion for Temporary Support at the same time you file your claim.
If your petition is approved, immediately after the hearing, the judge will issue an order for temporary support pending the hearing of the lawsuit. If you do not file Interim Child Support Petitions, you will have to wait for the final hearing. The hearing process can take several months. The decision on the application is made faster than the final decision of the case. nine0004
If you are filing a Complaint for Modification and can show that you and the parent you know have reached an agreement on major issues (such as his current salary), you can file Motion for a Complaint for Modification. for Summary Judgment) . This will allow you to get the final decision of the court sooner. But you can only file a Motion for Summary Judgment if you don't have a major disagreement on the main points. If you are sure that everything is clear and you do not need to dispute or prove anything, consult a lawyer on how to do this. You can contact your local legal services office for help.
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Features of paying child support in the USA - who pays whom and how much? Everything you need to know about divorce in the USA
Peculiarities of filing a divorce in the presence of minor children in America
Divorce causes only negative emotions, because it is almost always accompanied by stress, depression, waste of money, nerves and time. And of course the United States is no exception.
Here the average duration of marriage is 18 years, and the divorce rate is 53%, which is 2% more than in Russia. The number of divorced in different states of America is somewhat different. nine0004
Thus, in Nevada the largest percentage (14.7) was recorded, and in New York the smallest (7%), most likely due to the fact that here citizens decide to marry at a more conscious age. Despite the unpleasant procedure of divorce, it often turns out that discord occurs in the family due to misunderstanding, lack of money, bored life, betrayal and many other reasons.
Then the spouses see only the dissolution of the marriage as a constructive way out.
Dissolution of a marriage must take place in court. nine0096 The party applying for a divorce must state in court the good reasons for their decision and present facts that prove that the marriage no longer makes sense and it would be better to dissolve it.
The court then notifies the other party of the motion. If there is no response after 30 days, the court will consider that both parties agree to a divorce. The divorce period becomes much more difficult and unpleasant if there are children in the family, especially minors.
Then you need to decide with whom the child will live after the divorce. If the spouses cannot resolve the issue on their own, then they deal with the court.
Usually preference is given to those who spent more time with the child, took better care of him, with whom a closer relationship was established. If the child is over 12 years old, then he has the right to choose a parent.
In the United States, divorce proceedings are a very expensive “pleasure”.
Lawyers here value their services at a tidy sum, besides, divorces usually drag on for a long time. And this entails significant additional costs. Therefore, when entering into marriage, it is recommended to conclude a contract, where all the conditions will be specified to the smallest detail. nine0004
If the ex-wife of an American citizen was a foreigner, she can file for alimony both at her place of registration and her husband. But due to the possibility of non-enforcement of foreign laws in the United States, lawyers advise choosing the latter option.
Alimony in Russia and the USA: who pays whom and how much?
Moreover, it is established for a sufficiently long period. Usually, the termination of the obligation occurs after the former spouse remarries.
Women often take advantage of this, slowly formalizing new family relationships officially. nine0004
There are cases when husbands manage to claim funds for their maintenance from their ex-wives. But the percentage of such cases is small.
More often, men literally beg competent officials to release them from the need to deduct money in the interests of their ex-wife, trying to prove that the spouse is well enough provided for and simply enriches herself at the expense of her ex-husband. Summing up all the above, we can say that alimony legal relations in the United States are based on fairly understandable and logical principles that are typical for alimony obligations in many countries of the world. nine0004
American divorce. How is child support dealt with in the states?
Notwithstanding the fact that the plaintiff in the case will not be a resident of the state under whose law the issue is being considered. But in relation to the defendant, "native" laws will be applied.
Nevertheless, it is easier to apply local law to the debtor than foreign law.
Thus, answering the question of how to obtain legal alimony from a US citizen, we can identify the most potentially successful option:
About the peculiarities of collecting money for dependents in the USA As already mentioned, case law is strong in America. Free in lawmaking and individual states. And they use it. Alimony laws, for example, Florida and Texas will be different. nine0004
US child support procedures
About 25% of children in the US live in single parent families. The spouse who lives alone with the child (in the overwhelming majority of cases, this is the wife) has the right to collect alimony from the former spouse.
Child benefits until age 21, although in some states up to age 18.
The procedure for collecting alimony takes place in court.
The alimony applicant submits a statement of claim to the court, then a decision is made according to which the defendant becomes officially obliged to financially help his former family. nine0004
Amount of maintenance payments in the USA
On average, a US citizen is assigned maintenance in the amount of 10-30% of the amount of income. They vary depending on the defendant's income, the larger they are, the greater the percentage charged, as well as the state, because each of them has its own laws.
However, there is a general rule that says that alimony depends on the total income of the spouses. The lower the wife's income, the greater the amount recovered from the defendant. nine0004
If the child alternately lives with his mother and then with his father, then the child who spends less time with him pays the alimony. For example, with a father, a son and / or daughter are 30%, and with a mother, 70%.
Then alimony is collected from the father, but the amount of payments is assigned much less than if he did not live with his children at all.
In the USA, as in many other countries, including Russia, there are bodies that monitor the execution of a court decision on the recovery of alimony. But there is also a peculiarity in this country, it consists in covering the wages of alimony by employers, because. the collection of alimony spoils the reputation of the employee and, accordingly, the organization. nine0004
Here you can find many examples when a citizen who did not want to pay alimony hid his income (not without the help of the employer).
However, in America there are tough measures to combat alimony: from deprivation of the right to drive a car to imprisonment. For example, in 2013, about 20 thousand American citizens were imprisoned here for non-payment of alimony.
It follows that the benefit received as a result of evading maintenance obligations is incommensurable with the punishment.
Therefore, it is better to conscientiously fulfill your duties before the law, your ex-wife and child. nine0004
How is alimony paid to a wife in the USA?
In the US, the ex-spouse is required to pay maintenance not only for the child, but also for his mother. The amount and timing of payments depends on a number of circumstances.
Let's take a closer look at the possible circumstances:
Many women in the US after a divorce are in no hurry to re-tie themselves to family ties. The fact is that the ex-wife marries another person, the obligations of the alimony are terminated. The only exceptions are those cases when he must pay alimony for life. For example, if the marriage lasted a very long time. nine0004
Alimony payments are also mandatory for the following circumstances:
Of course, if after a divorce the children stay with their father, then on the contrary, alimony can be collected from the wife for his maintenance. But in practice, such situations rarely occur.
Thus, in the US, the alimony is obliged to fully support his former family, paying money to support not only the child, but also his wife. And for non-fulfillment of their duties, the law provides for various penalties, up to imprisonment. nine0004
Income
One of the main guidelines for determining child support is income. This takes into account the gross or net income of both parents, and from the percentage is calculated the amount that each parent must pay as alimony.
Deductions
If one of the parents has already been imposed by the court on the obligation to pay child support, and he regularly pays them, then the amount of this support is subject to deduction when determining his income for the purposes of determining the amount of new support.
However, this rule is valid only for the establishment of new alimony, it is not possible to revise the previous established amount of alimony taking into account new alimony. nine0004
Childcare expense
The government also determines the amount that parents must spend on childcare. Usually, this amount is calculated taking into account the mandatory taxes that the parent pays. However, some states provide benefits to parents who pay child support and exempt them from taxes on their income.
Health care expense
Among other things, when determining the amount of alimony, great attention is paid to the issue of covering the child's health insurance. When support is approved, the amount needed to pay off health insurance is included in the main amount of support. Some states also account for emergency medical expenses as well as incidental medical expenses. nine0004
Other expenses
The amount of support can also be increased taking into account other expenses.
Other expenses usually include specific expenses that are specific to each individual case. Such expenses include the cost of educating children with disabilities or gifted children. Usually such expenses are divided between the parents proportionally and are included in the amount of alimony.
Shared Custody and Visitation
The judge tries to take into account the time the child spends with either parent when setting the amount of child support. The more a parent is allowed to spend with a child, the more child support is assigned. For example, if a child is assigned joint custody, the amount of child support will be significantly less than if the child has a single guardian for short visits. nine0004
The use of guidelines in determining the amount of alimony is not only aimed at protecting the rights and interests of children, but is also calculated on the fair distribution of material responsibilities between parents. However, there are situations in which the amount of child support established is greater than or less than the amount determined by the guidelines.
In this case, litigation is required to establish mitigating factors.
Good reason
For a few more years in New York State, for example, to get a divorce, it was necessary to admit one of the parties was guilty and the other was offended. One of the spouses had to confess to treason, drunkenness, beatings...
When nothing of the kind really happened, someone alone had to take the crime against the family. And only in 2010 there was adopted a law on the possibility of divorce "without anyone's fault", although the rest of America has long done it.
Divorce, where both parties are not to blame, is based on two main reasons: people “have not lived together for a hundred years” (in fact, they have not lived for at least a year and a half) or they are separated by irreconcilable contradictions. nine0004
The state of Oklahoma first passed a progressive "no-fault" divorce law in 1953, followed 17 years later by the state of California. Then the governor there was Ronald Reagan - the future president of America.
It is no coincidence that it was he who had a hand in the liberalization of family law. Reagan is the only one of all 44 US presidents who had a divorce in his biography, which did not prevent him from making his second wife, Nancy , the first lady of the country. nine0004
Emancipation, however!
I am not a feminist, so I am not horrified when a woman after a divorce receives alimony from her ex-husband. But the way men fight for their wives' money is amazing. The client of a lawyer friend of mine, an engineer by profession, pays her husband three thousand dollars a month, literally half of what she earns.
They haven't made any children, and the engineer doesn't understand why she has to feed someone else's grown-up child - her ex, who doesn't work and is just going to study design or business, what exactly he hasn't decided yet. But recently the engineer was lucky: she unearthed a terrible secret. It turns out that a 22-year-old girl, an aspiring fashion designer, has been living in the house of her ex-husband for four months now.
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This was the reason for a new trial: the ex-wife was spotted and, turning to the judge, said that she did not have the strength to feed two creative people. The husband justified himself that the designer girl was like a daughter to him, but the judge did not heed this argument and the amount of alimony decreased, however, not significantly. The ex-husband was also advised to look for work, bring documentary evidence of mailing his resume to employers and attending interviews. The man left the courtroom gloomy and "robbed." nine0004
Still, on a nationwide scale, women who are alimony are not yet common, in 2010 only 3% of all divorcing husbands received payments from ex-wives, although, according to experts, the number of such men is growing rapidly.
Is money more valuable than love?
In most states, child support is paid until the former spouse marries or remarries. But in the state of Florida, for example, not so long ago they limited the terms of payments.
The judge sets a time limit, let's say 2 years, since he believes that this time is enough for a woman who did not work in marriage after a divorce to learn how to get her own bread. The amount of alimony depends on how long the marriage was or not. If you have been married for less than 11 years, this is not considered a long time in Florida. Supporters of a limited period of alimony payments are sure that these payments are “harmful” and often slow down the start of a new life: women do not remarry and even support their lonely state in every possible way, because money is more precious than love. And the financially more prosperous half, in order not to pay alimony, goes to deceit and sometimes to the complete collapse of their career. nine0004
In general, it is enough to go to the site of divorced and divorced people once and read their stories to understand that all these people are unhappy.
In seven US states, a husband or wife can sue a lover or mistress who caused a divorce.
And the “razluchniki” will answer according to the law for invading someone else's territory.
Men also cry
One pensioner, 67 years old, left the state of Massachusetts, according to the laws of which he had to pay large alimony to his ex-wife, with whom he had been married for 34 years. In 2009he lost his job as a pharmacist, and never found a new one, owed his wife 20 thousand, for which he served four days in prison, until friends and relatives made up the shortfall for him.
After that, the ex-husband went to live on an Indian reservation, since he was a quarter of the Cherokee. Now he sits there and says: I'm already old, release me from lifelong alimony to my ex-wife, but we are completely on an equal footing with her.
But in Massachusetts there is no such law that the old ex-husband can not pay alimony to the ex-wife. And in some others, laws have already been passed under which the payment of alimony is suspended after reaching retirement age.
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Who is in profit
The longer a divorce lasts, the more expensive it is. Half of the spouses during this time are united in a common feeling of dislike for lawyers. Lawyers here are called bees that collect honey from divorce flowers, and the longer they collect, the better for them.
The average time for which you will be divorced is from one to three years. The lawyer takes for such cases as for heart surgery, if the case is complex, and if it is simple, then as for appendicitis, which is also a lot.
An amazing coincidence: of the four female divorce lawyers I know, three are not married and never have been and never intend to. And I don't even mentally ask them why...
Collection problems
There are quite a lot of such problems:
Which law to apply?
Note that the family and civil legislation of the Russian Federation allows the claimant for alimony to independently determine the jurisdiction of the case. That is:
It would seem that the choice is obvious. It is quite simple to file a claim with the Russian judicial authority. You can even do without the help of a lawyer. A sample application can be found on the Internet, “spy” in the reception of the court building, where similar samples are hung out.
You can also contact a child support specialist.
But there is a problem with the execution of the Russian judicial act in the United States. The thing is, there is no money back guarantee. It may take a long time to prove that the decision of the Russian court is completely legal in America. nine0004
Meanwhile, lawyers specializing in international law note that in most cases Russian decisions are recognized in the United States. Moreover, in a number of states there are local statutes, we would call them regional, which establish that a foreign judgment may well be enforced in America.
It seems that it is not worth the risk of relying on Russian legislation, it is better to resolve the issue according to local laws. Despite the fact that the plaintiff in the case will not be a resident of the state under whose legislation the issue is being considered. nine0004
On the other hand, “native” laws will apply to the defendant. Nevertheless, it is easier to apply local law to the debtor than foreign law.
Thus, answering the question of how to get legal alimony from a US citizen, you can identify the most potentially successful option:
Rebellious Parents
Non-custodial parents who evade their child support obligations are sometimes referred to as rebellious parents. Parents who share an equal role in raising children are much more likely to comply as support compliance exceeds 90% when the payer states that he (or he) believes he (or he) has a relatively equal role in raising children . nine0004
The US Department of Health and Human Services estimates that 68% of child support cases were in arrears in 2003, up 15% from 53% in 1999. Some of these cases of debt are said to be related to administrative practices such as income imputation.
parents where none exist and issuing support orders by default.
According to one study, the reasons for not paying child support were as follows:
Rogers, concerning whether South Carolina was legally required to provide an assigned attorney for Turner, who was imprisoned for non-payment of child support. 
Some comparison can also be made with Russian collection rules. nine0004 
child. nine0004 
Some consider such punishments to be unconstitutional. 4 September 19In 1998, the Alaska Supreme Court upheld a law allowing government agencies to revoke driver's licenses from parents who are in serious violation of child support obligations. And in United States of America v. Sage , U.S. Court of Appeals (2nd Circuit, 1996), the court upheld the constitutionality of a law allowing federal fines and imprisonment of up to two years for a person who willfully fails to pay more. $5,000 in child support for a year or more if said child resides in a state other than that of the noncustodial parent. nine0004 
The lender can forgive such debts. nine0004 
nine0004 
" URESA sought to enforce these provisions in two ways: criminal and civil. Criminal authorities relied on the creditor state to demand extradition from the debtor, or the debtor to surrender. Civil law enforcement relied on the creditor to bring proceedings in his/her state. The originating State will determine whether the debtor had a support obligation. If the initiating court granted the claim, the initiating court referred the case to the state of the debtor. The respondent State, which has personal jurisdiction over the debtor, will provide notice and hearing to the debtor. After this hearing, the court that responded to this request must enforce the support order. nine0004 
